Is It Healthy To Eat The Same Thing Every Day? Even If It's Nutritious?

Getty Images Sometimes, eating the same thing every day, especially if it’s nutritious, seems like a good idea. For example, an athlete friend of mine eats the same thing every day at the exact same time to “secure his energy levels.” Two hours before his workout, he eats chicken, rice and rice cakes. Katherine Metzelaar, a Seattle-based dietitian and certified intuitive eating counselor, explained if someone’s eating the same foods every day, they might have an eating disorder called avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder, or ARFID. “If your everyday meal includes a lot of variety, just in that one day you’re going to be getting a lot more nutrients than if you’re just eating egg and toast for breakfast, a turkey sandwich, and beef and rice for dinner,” Van Eck said. Metzelaar cited fitness competitors who go on strict diets, saying, “They start to notice cravings for other foods and that can show up in all kinds of ways like in sweets or certain dishes, and a lot of food taking up a lot of headspace for them, dreaming about food, waking up in the middle of the night craving food.” The bottom line is, eating a mixture of foods and obtaining enough nutrients every day is ideal for a healthy lifestyle.